Now that the hide is done and just needs a bit more time to "cure" (It's already dry to the touch, but I just want to be sure that it's nice and hard throughout since the coats of sealer were thick!), I snapped a few pictures with my cell phone.
For reference, here is that first picture again when I coated the clay with Eco Earth:
Then, another coat of sealer (Mod Podge) leaves it looking like this:
As it dries, the coat gets clear and less shiny. Even after it is dry to the touch, this continues to happen as that thick layer cures throughout. This is honestly best done outside as long as it is warm and isn't raining or extremely humid. It really speeds the process up.
I have a close-up of what this whole process does in terms of the "finish" that you'll get. I think it's kinda cool!
After it cures for another day or so and I get it installed, I'll end up "dusting" it over with some fresh Eco Earth so that it becomes more of a burrow like I designed rather than just a hide. As neat as the final texture is, I really only did that to make it water resistant for easier cleaning and to help it blend in better as substrate shifts and whatnot.
Rest assured that there will be more pictures once it's installed! As everything gets put together, I'll get my "real" camera out so that we can be done with these crappy cell phone pictures!